OPINION: Letter to the Editor – County Management and Mismanagement*
Dear Editor of Lanier County News
July 24, 2025
As an online subscriber I have followed your LCN for quite a while and have not always agreed with your perspective, however, you are SPOT ON as to your assessment of what I term CORRUPTION within the leadership of Lanier County.
When the County Manager has, not only close ties with the Chairman of the County Commission who is the President of the Bank that most departments within Lanier County have business relationships with but a personal financial relationship one cannot wonder if there is a certain scheme going on in the background. Most all the County Manager’s properties are financed by the bank, it has been brought to light that often times the financial obligation to pay for these properties are behind in payment, but are forgiven. We call that ‘being in cahoots’, or ‘showing favoritism’. Former Bank President Larry Lee started this but of course he now lives in an over $1M home, and has lived on social security for decades.
Taking into consideration in my statement is the County Manager current pay is (obtained through a FIOA request) and what he was earning while working at the Lanier Hospital. Unless he was a Trust Fund kid or inherited millions, there is no way that he could own properties in the city and/or county and have them sit vacant and not produce enough income to even keep up appearances.
Perhaps that is why when driving past these properties they look dilapidated and uncared for. I’ve wondered why the Lakeland City Council has not pushed for clean up our town, but also note that there is a junky tire shop which is in violation of the State of Georgia OCGA § 12-8-40.1 is not being enforced. The people care, but our leaders shun their input and attempt to silence them. Case in point: when citizens gathered en masse over the enormous tax rate increases.
I am now wondering if there would be enough support for a recall of County Commission Chairman Alex Lee for loss of confidence & mismanagement of county funds and the dismantling of his board. There may also be a racketeering ad or conspiracy violation for self-enrichment if one exames years of obtaining and reselling land. There is also the history of Hank Smith, District 2 and Georgia Power employee, and his push to hire the out of state fire fighters a few years ago, brought on and outfitted with vehicles and lodging with the intent that they would travel out west to fight fires and the count would make millions! They never left the county other than to use county vehicles to shop in Valdosta and throw beer drinking parties while occupying the county owned building at Murry and Ga Hwy 135, which had been seized by the Sheriff’s Department when former owner Patel lost his case for organized gambling at that location.
I have heard of one piece of property in particular that was owned by one party, surrendered for bank taxes, private bid accepted in the name of a third party, then given to Commissioner Lee as a transfer to kin. Then this particular property was sold to the county for a profit. Yes, this same story came from multiple individuals.
As you know Lanier has old family names who have all inter-married. Some of us where not fortunate enough to marry into those clans even though we have lived here all our lives.
Things will not change until there is some level of accountability. How do we obtain that unless it is done at the ballot box which will not be available for 3+ more years. Secondly, who wants to take on the burden of cleaning up the politics of Lanier and has the personal funds to do it? I have yet to get an answer to that one.
Yes, Ms. Moore, Lanier is corrupt. There are elements in Lanier County that insist of preying on every taxpayer. These taxpayers think that these elected officials are looking out for the taxpayer but they are all about self-enrichment. I’m afraid that things will never change unless there is a change in leadership.
Our Sheriff has been ostracized for doing his job on a shoe string budget while the County Commission builds ball fields because Commissioners kids or grandkids want a sports complex. I’ve even heard that Alex Lee wants the ball field named after him or his father so that the name recognition carries on much like that J. Straton Shaw Highway, US 221 south (Valdosta Hwy) or the Ga Hwy 122 east (Cogdell Hwy) named WIlliam Jackson “Moogie” Lee Highway.
I’m sure that you wil be covering the re-dedication of the Post Office that has been abandoned due to the hurricane which will be named for Ms. Nell Roquemore.
From Representative Scott’s website:
Rep. Austin Scott’s BIll to Rename Lakeland Post Office After Nell Patten Roquemore Passes House
June 3, 2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House of Representatives today passed H.R. 6983, legislation introduced by Rep. Austin Scott (GA-08) to rename the U.S. Postal Office in Lakeland, Georgia, the “Nell Patten Roquemore Post Office” after late constituent and former Lakeland Postmaster Nell Patten Roquemore, by a vote of 368-2.
“Ms. Nell Patten Roquemore was the epitome of a public servant, of a public servant, and renaming the Lakeland Post Office after her is a way to commemorate her significant and lasting impact on Lanier County,” Scott said.
This legislation was cosponsored by all thirteen members of the Georgia delegation in the House.
During her career, Roquemore served as the Lakeland Postmaster, Mayor Pro-Tem of Lakeland,secretary to Generals at Moody AIr Force Base, and was a local school teacher.
Roquemore was also the President of The Lanier County Garden Club and served as Co-Chair of Let’s Improve Lanier’s Appearance (LILA). Her dedication to LILA evolved into a lifelong initiative, most recently establishing the Milltown Murals project, for which Lakeland was proclaimed “Georgia’s Historic Mural City” by her friend and former Governor, Sonny Perdue.
If you are not a Roquemore, Shaw, Swindell, Lee, Fender, or Simpson most owe homage to one in one form or another. Do I sound jealous? Not in the least. Disgusted and betrayed is more like it.
Submitted,
Concerned Citizen and Taxpayers of Lanier
Link to scanned original letter to editor: https://www.laniercountynewsonline.com/2025/07/31/concerned-citize…tor-july-24-2025/
- The wrong art indicating “editorial” instead of the more correct “letter to editor” was initially used and has been corrected.
